Ruchi Mahajan

The moment we get up from our beds and until we are back there again (and in fact when we are sleeping ) , we have this amazing ability within us, to be able to hear and listen to our surroundings, to the people around us. Listening is supposed to be our strength, something we humans can use to our advantage. But don’t you think, listening doesn’t come so easy? And why listen?   In this fast-paced age in which we are living, we are hardly listening to our own inner voices, the probability of us listening to other people or things around us is slowly getting grimmer. This world seems to be full of people ready to talk, ready to interrupt, and ready to tell their stories which they are already practicing in their heads while the others speak. We aren’t really listening to understand, we are listening to probably reply back, to pass our judgment, to tell our opinion we just built of the other person. Our egos prompt us to show our intelligence, our knowledge, and brilliance ins...

Have you been on a guilt trip ever? Chances are, yes, and often. It may be that we have really wronged someone in some way or we simply imagined that we wronged someone and then this bad itchy feeling appears from nowhere, which keeps pulling us in the past and worrying us for the future. Most of us have been there, we often let guilt overpower us, sometimes for our entire lifetimes. Most likely, we have at least faced this manipulation tactic, when someone made us feel we weren’t good enough for something or someone and that was enough to make us opt to self-doubt ourselves. This made us feel bad, may be uncomfortable, and imperfect too. But is guilt really such a bad boy?   Can we instead give this bad boy a second chance? Why not let guilt make us uncomfortable and scared? Why not let it help us realize we all are imperfect at the end of the day? And then why not let guilt show us the way instead, or act as our guiding path, that nudge in our arm, a shaking of our soul to mak...

I had heard so much about Bhutan that when I quit my job and had an opportunity to travel without any worry, the first country we chose to travel to (this was April 2023) was Bhutan. Its close proximity to India and no visa hassles served as an added advantage. It was just me and my sister travelling, for the first time to another land all on our own. We planned every bit and detail of our itinerary ourselves and also added a one-night halt at the city of joy, Kolkata since we had a connecting flight from Bangalore (India) to Bhutan via Kolkata anyway. That 5N/6D trip remains one of our most beautiful memories. Arriving at Kolkata first, nothing seemed commonplace in this city. It was so vibrant and so spectacular, with its endless bazaars and all its food delights. It was definitely the right start for us. The next day, we took our flight to Bhutan, on the nation’s royal carrier, Drukair. Let me tell you if you don’t know already, your experience of this Buddhist land starts in the ai...

Remember the last time you wanted to show your gratitude to someone but paused at that moment and never got a chance back. Or when someone brought a smile to your face but you let the moment pass without reciprocating. Maybe someone hurt you in the past and sought forgiveness, but you still carry the pain of that hurt in your heart because you chose that they don’t deserve your forgiveness. It may also happen that you yourself are waiting to make that apology but don’t have the courage or the perfect moment to do that. These are regular occurrences in our busy lives and believe it or not, we don’t deliberately miss saying those magical words of thank you, sorry or I forgive you. We just sincerely believe there is still time, a lot of time that we are left with, on our journey on Earth. We sincerely believe tomorrow will be kinder and easier for us, and that we will find that magical moment that will help make that long pending phone call or show our gratitude or say our apologies to th...

 If you want to gain something, consider gaining a friend, They make you richer and wiser and make it all worth it in the end. Your soul knows, your heart tells, whenever you find your type, They mirror your every emotion, even your every silly hype.   Friends are hard to find, you are lucky if you have a few, They stick with you like gum, no matter if they are old or new. They come in all shapes and sizes, with pockets big and small, But their hearts are pure gold, and their souls are always tall.   When your going will get tough, and tough wouldn’t get going, Angels dressed up like friends may appear, without you even knowing.   Friends will stand by your side when the world turns its back, They will dust you off and help you stand, maybe give you a little whack.   Friendships are like rainbows, they make the dark clouds disappear,     The skies shine with hope and cheer when good friends are near. Their love will kn...

Sometimes, when the going gets tough and when the road ahead looks dark and hazy, we think to ourselves- okay, this is it. All the sunshine days seem to be past us, like they never happened at all. And the turmoil we are currently passing through, all the great hardships that we are facing, they are the only thing that seems real. These are the times when the disappointments we faced and the fears we couldn’t overcome, scare us to take the next step. Our confidence & self-belief, look weak to their knees and the road seems just too steep. Where does it go? Do we turn back now and call it quits? Well, no. We weren’t built like that. Have you noticed, the river does not stop flowing when it is faced with obstacles in its stream, it simply flows around them. The Sun rays don’t disappear when the windowsill tries to stop them, it simply passes through it. The spider doesn’t give up when it falls that umpteenth time trying to build a web, it dusts itself off and crawls up once more....